Data sources
PMKeyS data
The PMKeyS is a Department of Defence administrative database that contains demographic and service information on all people with ADF service on or after 1 January 2001 (when the system was introduced). The Department of Defence provided the AIHW with an extract from the PMKeyS containing 118,800 records of all ADF members who have had at least 1 day of service on or after 1 January 2001 and who were discharged after 1 January 2001.
PBS/RPBS data
The PBS and RPBS are national government-funded schemes designed to subsidise the cost of pharmaceutical medicines. The PBS is available to all Australian residents and overseas visitors covered by a reciprocal health-care agreement. The RPBS and its subsidies are available to DVA Gold or White card holders.
The linked PBS/RPBS dataset contained recorded medication dispensing to the PMKeyS cohort from April 2012 to December 2018, with dispensing below the co-payment threshold captured from April 2012. The data is recorded at the point of dispensing. Details such as the drug supplied, the conditions of supply and limited details on the patient, pharmacy and prescriber were provided in the dataset. The datasets were linked using an associated set of identifiers, the Medicare Enrolment File (MEF), which was only available for the PBS.
DVA client data
The DVA client database is an administrative database that contains demographic and service information on DVA clients. The extract received by the AIHW Data Linkage Unit, consisting of DVA veteran clients born on or after 1 January 1925 with at least one day of ADF service on or after 1 January 2001, contained 292,804 records. Only those who also had a record in the PMKeyS were included in the contemporary ADF population.